Land Grab To Some, Quick Take To Others

Municipality Power Matter Of Contention

February 01, 1998|By Annie Sweeney, Tribune Staff Writer.

As aging suburban downtowns have deteriorated, municipal officials have increasingly been turning in recent years to so-called "quick take" powers to condemn old stores to pave the way for glitzy new retailers.

Originally used to build toll roads and lay sewer lines, quick-take powers are being assailed by some property owners as sudden and drastic means towns use to grab up neglected, vacant or out-of-date buildings.

But to suburban developers and many municipal officials, the special condemnation power is an essential backup in the effort to make sure they can quickly get the land they need to build hip downtowns.

"Right now there seems to be a demand for these lifestyle centers, these redevelopments of downtowns," Northbrook-based developer Chuck Malk said.

Without it, land owners and government officials can haggle over a price for months, or years. With it, the government can immediately file a motion with a judge who fixes a fair price for the property, and the town can get title to the land in a few weeks to a few months.

If the property owner is dissatisfied with the price the judge sets, he can file an appeal. In the meantime, the development stays on track and on time.

In the past, the power had been wielded for projects ranging from the city of Chicago's efforts to rebuild the North Loop to installing the CTA's Orange Line on Chicago's Southwest Side to acquiring easements to dredge the Little Calumet River.

But it has been during about the past dozen years that suburban governments have increasingly gone to Springfield to get the power as well, Chicago condemnation attorneys say.

In the past two years, Lincolnshire, Oak Park, Deerfield, Highland Park and Northbrook have all sought or gotten quick-take authority to spur economic development.

But as more towns have turned to quick-take, a growing number of critics have cropped up around the state.

Those critics argue that quick-take laws are too drastic and are unfair to property owners. And they also question whether, as can happen, a local government should use quick-take to get land for a private company to develop.

Attempts to get quick-take powers ran into such intense opposition this past legislative session, from opponents in both Highland Park and Northbrook, that a bill that would have granted it to both towns foundered.

And last week, in response to the community outcry, Northbrook Village President Mark W. Damisch issued a public apology and promised not to use any type of condemnation as the community works to enhance its downtown.

The village had been considering a redevelopment that could have required condemnation, and, like other towns, it wanted to have quick-take authority just in case.

But once it became clear at a recent public hearing that the community did not support quick-take power, the village board backed off.

"The issue of quick-take helped create a passion, a sense of urgency because it made (condemnation) seem much more imminent," Northbrook Village Manager John Novinson said.

Business leaders in both communities said a large part of the problem was the lack of information that made it to residents and landowners.

"At the very least, they should approach me and tell me why they want my land," said Larry Hillman of Hillco Realty, a representative of the Highland Park Central Avenue Merchants Association. "I think there is a right place for quick-take. I don't think it is to be done in a clandestine manner. I don't think it is to be done lightly."

When Rep. Lauren Beth Gash (D-Highland Park) got wind of the concern from people such as Hillman, she pulled her support from a Highland Park bill that would have granted quick-take for two business districts--one in the downtown district and the other west of there at U.S. Highway 41.

But municipal officials and developers argue that if quick-take is communicated adequately, it is justified.

Timing, quick-take proponents argue, becomes even more crucial when towns as close as Deerfield and Highland Park are both working on similar downtown re-developments that are targeting similar chains and shops.

Deerfield got quick-take power in 1996 to support its plans for Deerfield Commons at Waukegan and Deerfield Roads.

"It is an absolute necessity," said Northbrook developer Malk, who owns the Commons and will develop the land. "Without quick-take, you can never get things done. You could be held up in court three, four, five years. If you are held up that much time, how do you assemble stuff?"

Deerfield officials have used quick-take power for one other piece of property in town without an criticism. Village administrator Bob Franz said there are no plans to use it with the Malk project unless it's necessary, but he agrees that simply having it is essential.

"Certainly the economy is right, there is a renewed interest in downtowns," Franz said. ". . . There's a number of reasons and conditions that exist that make this (development) `now or never.' "

Still, some lawyers and state leaders say they feel uncomfortable with this type of relationship between a private developer and a local government.

"Why wouldn't the private party be in a position to buy the property?" Sen. Ed Petka (R-Plainfield) asked. "Any land is available at a price."

But Peter Dame, assistant to the Oak Park village manager, said his community learned the hard way not to rely on traditional condemnation.

Negotiations with land owners during a 1996 re-development project near Harlem Avenue and Lake Street delayed the completion of the project by one year.

The village got permission last session to use quick-take power in the older, commercial sections of Oak Park as redevelopment continues there.